CVA Youth Muzzleloader and Traditions Crockett

[woodmaster62]

Hey all, I recently bought a CVA Youth Model Muzzleloader for my nine year old son who has went
muzzleloading crazy all at once. I figured at 38 inches long overall and about 5 lbs, it would be a good starter gun. I also bought my wife a 32 cal Traditions Crockett about the same time. I think the fact that myself and my brother-in-law have been
muzzleloading for approx 8-9 years, and my nephew
and niece have just started might have bumped things along.
Anyways the CVA Youth model is a new 50 cal and supposed
to use a .490 ball and a .015 patch. This is a Tight fit - especially for a nine year old to shove down the barrel. My 50 cal Great Plains is silk smooth loading compared to the CVA. I didn't know if any of you had any experience with this Youth model or not. I've thought maybe a thinner patch or smaller ball, but would like to keep the same as my gun .490 ball and .015 patch.
I don't know, maybe it's just new and tight.

Also the wife's 32 cal Traditions Crockett. I bought this used but very low milage on gunbroker dot com. When I opened the box, it looked new, but when I got it out and tried half and full cock neither would set. Finally the only way I could get the hammer to catch at all was to set the set trigger first. Not very safe in my book. Anyways I pulled the lock and found that the sear lever was bent at not quite a 50-60 degree angle and was always touching the trigger assembly. So I pulled the sear, heated and somewhat straightened the shaft, re-assembled the lock put it togeather. It worked!! According to my local possibles shop lady, the Crockett always does this. Hard to believe you would set your triggers before you could put your cap on the nipple. Also was wondering what the normal rear sight is on the Crockett. It has the primative style which is great, but the installation is so-so, very sloppy dovetail. Just wondering if any of you have had experience with either of the guns. My Great Plains has been a rock solid bulls-eye popper right out of the box so I guess I was spoiled.
Any info is a help.

Keep your powder dry!!
Grumpy Bear :thumbsup:

 

[jethro224]

My Crockett lock works just fine. Both half and full cock engage fully and I never set the trigger until I'm ready to shoot. Something ain't right with yours.
I would agree that the dovetail is sloppily done on the rear sight. Mine looks like it was too tight at the rear and was staked at the front. Never had to mess with it tho. Did file a bit off the front sight to sight in.
It's a good shooter for the $.
The only problem I ever had with mine is the cleaning jag hangs up at the very bottom of the bore. Can be a real pain to get out.
Do a forum search on Crockett rifles. Lots of good stuff on here.
Good luck with the lock problem.

 

[walruskid1]

welcome aboard fellow buckeye, sounds like a great start to a bp collection. glad to hear about getting younger shooters involved. can't say anything about the cva youth rifle but i have a crockett with the fixed rear sight. i am having the log cabin install a long tanged peep sight. mounts to the barrel with two screws/requires drilling and tapping. much easier on my eyeballs. the lock on mine was fine out of the box.

 

[John Wasmuth]

Can't comment on the youth model, but do have a Crockett and have not had a moments problem with it. Lock loscks when it is supposed to and the sights were installed nicely. I did have a bit of a fight with it on the jag hangin however it seems to have smoothed out now. It's a shooter. More fun than yer allowed to have with yer clothes on!

 

[Matt B]

I bought a CVA youth for my wife. It loads pretty easy. Maybe switch to .10 patches, once you shoot them up. Then try the .15 thick ones.

What are you lubing them with? I like the moose milk. My receipe is a little different than the one here. But it helps load easier. Hope it helps.

 

[n8dawg6]

well, i dont know about the crockett rifle in particular, but i once had a traditions deerhunter .32, and i have a traditions blackpowder revolver. the metal on both is very soft. in fact, the wedgepin on the .32 was so soft that it was almost useless. you could bend it like a pretzel. i ended up sending the rifle back. havent had any trouble at all from the pistol. maybe their heat-treating is just inconsistent? or non-existant?

anyway, i suspect that may be the same problem with the lock parts in your crockett, especially if you were able to bend the part back into shape. now, whether the previous owner abused the lock is another question. the parts may be soft, but still plenty hard for their intended use in that lock. either way, the solution is probably to replace the part (or the lock!), or harden the offending piece.

 

[Snowshoe]

I bought one for my 10 year old last year, we shoot 30 gr BP with .490 and .010 for plinking. I had the lock out for some tuning and noticed that it didn't have a briddle so I called CVA and ordered a briddle and two screws. that improved it a lot. It shoots qite well.
Shoe

 

[DannyB]

I've got a Crockett (named her Polly) and have had no problems out of it. The rear sight had too big a notch for my taste, so I did a little modification, and now she's sweetern' sugar.

I took this punk that married my neice on a tree-rat hunt earlier this year. I took Polly and he took a scoped 10-22 Ruger. I won by a score of 3 to 2. Two of the three were head-shots (lucky), but he was slack-jawed after the first one. After the second one hit the ground he wouldn't let me shoot first anymore. Young punk!!!

 

[n8dawg6]

well, to be honest, i really wouldnt mind picking up one of those crockett rifles. but im scared after my experience with the deerhunter .32. :hmm:

also, that would cut into my flintlock fund. :nono: which really isnt much of a fund to begin with. :redface:

 

Greetings:

I bought or should I say Santa brought my 9 year old one of the CVA youth rifles last year. He had the same problem with the tight ball and the .15 patch material. I started using vasoline hand lotion (yellow bottle) for lube and it fixed the problem. He can go through the entire loading process all on his own. This is not to mention that he kicks but with the rifle. The kids can shoot from cross sticks until they are 12.

Basically just lube up the patches and it should work great. My son is ten now and is winning or placing very high in all types of competition. Wins all kinds of cool stuff. I often try to get him to pick stuff out that I like and trade him for a big banana split on the way.

30 grains of FFF Goex .490 ball works fine even out to 50 plus yards and groups great with the hand lotion patch lube.

Tom

 

[Regulis7]

Bought my son a Youth Hunter 50 some years back, we had the same problems with the balls/patch on loading. At first it was a tough loading job using .015 patches lubed with Bore Butter, but after a 100-150 rds loading got easier.

Most accurate load in the rifle was 40-45grs RS under a .017 patch and .490rb. Accuracy was really good out to 50 yards, past that and it didnt matter what patch/ball/lube was used because the accuracy was terrible.

Any charge from 50grs and up the recoil was no joke, cheek slap was a big time event with 70grs. My son took a big dislike to the rifle after a few cheek slaps, so we eventually replaced his gun with something more shootable for him.

Regulis7

 

[woodmaster62]

Thanks all for loooking in. I'm kind of in agreement with you guys on the youth model, as I picked up some .010 patches yesterday. I'll lube up good and we'll go shooting Sunday afternoon. Hopefully it will wear in.
As for the Traditions Crockett, The Log Cabin Shop in Lodi Ohio supposedly stocks parts for the lock including sear levers. I think I'll call them next paycheck and see about getting some parts.
The boy gets a little bigger and a little more interested, I'll probably be looking for a different gun for him anyways. Heck, One of these days I might get a burr up my but and invest in a flintlock myself. My Great Plains caplock 50 cal is a great gun, but its always a "hummm-- I'd like to have one of those" kind of thing with the flinters. Besides I'm a lefty, so the inexpensive flints are a little harder to find. But I keep watching.

Thanks again guys! :thumbsup:
Keep your powder dry!
grumpy bear

 

grumpy bear, great that you're getting your boy into muzzeloading! The historical society I belong to sponsors a 4H muzzeloading program for the kids and we use the CVA youth rifles. They're great for this particular use. Speaking of the 4H, you may want to check and see if the 4H in your area has a muzzeloading program, you may want to get your boy enrolled.

 

[piney]

My daughter shoots the CVA Youth Hunter and we are having problems with the hammer not consistently firing the cap. Has anyone else had this problem? Or have an idea how to fix it?

 

[sduve]

My daughter shoots the CVA Youth Hunter and we are having problems with the hammer not consistently firing the cap. Has anyone else had this problem? Or have an idea how to fix it?

Double check and be sure the bolt holding the lock isn't over-tightened. It seems that when my 9 yr olds rifle was not striking the cap just so, we noticed the hammer not in-line and loosened the the bolt a turn or two. We used 50-70 gr Pyro RS with .010" patch and PRB. Hope this helps.

 

Piney, we have'nt had any problems with ours as of yet. Bear in mind that these are'nt exactly high quality rifles but they are a decent economical choice for starter rifles plus the price was right. I also agree with sduve in that you should check to ensure the bolt securing the lock to the rifle is'nt too tight. Also what type of caps are you using?

 

[Deerstalker]

Piney,
My daughter's CVA youth model had the same problem, and it ended up being the nipple. I changed it over to a musket cap nipple, and the nipple I had didn't fit the cap real snug, which allowed the cap to rock on the nipple just a little upon firing... cap didn't go off very reliably. I replaced the nipple with one I had in my range box that I had no idea where I got it, but problem solved. She killed here first deer with that rifle two seasons ago at age 9, with a PRB and 50 grains of pyrodex. 20 yard neck shot put the little buck down in his tracks! I don't know who was more excited, her or me. She is still hunting with me, and gets more into it everyday. Good advise about the 4H program, I coach archery for 4H here locally, and we have an excellent program with blackpowder as well.
Hope this helps,
Bryan :thumbsup:

 

[Snowshoe]

We did but I put on a mountain states nipple and the problem went away.
Shoe